Ordnance Factory Board

Ordnance Factory Board (OFB) (Hindi: आयुध निर्माणी बोर्ड; IAST: Āyudh nirmāṇī borḍ) consisting of the Indian Ordnance Factories (भारतीय आयुध निर्माणियाँ; Bhāratīya āyudh nirmāṇiyān), is an industrial organisation, functioning under the Department of Defence Production of Ministry of Defence, Government of India. It is engaged in research, development, production, testing, marketing and logistics of a comprehensive product range in the areas of air, land and sea systems. OFB comprises forty-one Ordnance Factories, nine Training Institutes, three Regional Marketing Centres and four Regional Controllerates of Safety, which are spread all across the country.[8][9]

OFB is the world's largest government-operated production organisation,[10] and the oldest organisation run by the Government of India.[11][12] It has a total workforce of about 164,000.[7] It is often called the "Fourth Arm of Defence",[13][14][15] and the "Force Behind the Armed Forces" of India.[16][17]
It is amongst the top 50 defence equipment manufacturers in the world.[5][18] Its total sales were at $3 billion (₹19982.71 crores) in 2015-'16.[4] Every year, 18 March is celebrated as the Ordnance Factory Day in India.[19][20]

Contents

The history and development of the Indian Ordnance Factories is directly linked with the British reign in India. The East India Company considered military hardware to be a vital element for securing their economic interest in India and increasing their political power. In 1775, the British East India company accepted the establishment of the Board of Ordnance at Fort William, Calcutta. This marks the official beginning of the Army Ordnance in India.

In 1787, a gunpowder factory was established at Ichapore; it began production in 1791, and the site was later used as a rifle factory, beginning in 1904. In 1801, Gun Carriage Agency (now known as Gun & Shell Factory, Cossipore) was established at Cossipore, Calcutta, and production began on 18 March 1802. This is the oldest ordnance factory in India still in existence.[21]

Growth

The growth of the Ordnance Factory Board leading to its present setup has been continuous but sporadic. There were eighteen ordnance factories before India became independent in 1947 and twenty-three factories have been established after independence, mostly in the wake of defence preparedness imperatives brought about by the wars involving India.

The Apex Board is headed by the Director General of Ordnance Factories (DGOF), who acts as the Chairman of the Board (ex officio Secretary to Government of India) and consists of nine other Members, who each hold the rank of Additional DGOF. Ordnance factories are divided into five operating divisions, depending upon the type of the main products/technologies employed. These are:

Ammunition and Explosives (A&E)

Weapons, Vehicles & Equipment (WV&E)

Materials and Components (M&C)

Armoured Vehicles (AV)

Ordnance Equipment Group of Factories (OEF)

Each of the above group of factories is headed by a Member/Additional DGOF who is in the rank of Special Secretary to Government of India. The four remaining members are responsible for staff functions, viz Personnel (Per), Finance (Fin), Planning & Material Management (P&MM), and Technical Services (TS), and they operate from Kolkata.

Each OFIL is headed by a Principal Director, and NADP by a Senior Principal Director. NADP provides training to Group A officers, whilst the other eight institutes impart training to Group B and Group C employees of the ordnance factories.

The Indian Ordnance Factories Service (IOFS) (Hindi: भारतीय आयुध निर्माणी सेवा) is a civil service of the Government of India. IOFS officers are Gazetted (Group A) defence-civilian officers under the Ministry of Defence.

Civilians are required to hold an Arms License (issued only for non-prohibited bore category weapons) in order to buy firearms in India. The following products of the Indian Ordnance Factories Board are available for civilians: